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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. net — after costs
  3. cell — in biology
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. scale — in music
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. scale — size or range
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. wound — an injury
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. net — in sport
  12. cell — a phone
  13. stock — goods
  14. net — for catching
  15. bank — for money
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. branch — a division
  18. bank — of a river
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. stock — shares
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. bank — for money
  24. branch — of a tree

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com